“Get back here!”

A furious roar rang like thunder as the clan leader broke his silence.

“Were all your years of life a complete waste?! How admirable! After failing to kill the father, you’re going to kill the son? If you dare to touch a hair on Long Chen’s head, Long Zhantian will carry out a bloodbath of your branch. Do you think Long Zhantian said those words in front of the gate to the ninth heaven to scare those worthless fellows? No, he said it for the Long clan, for you!”

At that moment, the wizened elder seemed to transform into a ferocious lion. Long Zaiye remained silent, retreating to his seat with a grim expression. His gloomy face was his final bit of stubbornness.

After that, the clan leader suppressed his fury. Despite his foolishness, Long Zaiye was a former member of the four Heavenly Saints, so the clan leader didn’t dare to curse him out too harshly.

“What is Long Chen’s intention? Why has he come to the Long clan?” Unexpectedly, Long Qianxue, who had remained silent for so many years, finally spoke.

“Based on the situation, it appears that he came to the Heavenly Desolation Domain to gather medicinal ingredients. He has issued missions in Mercenary City and enlisted mercenaries to assist him,” reported an elder in charge of the Long clan’s information network. He had been aware of Long Chen’s arrival from the moment Long Chen entered the Heavenly Desolation Domain. Recognizing the gravity of the situation and drawing from his experience with Long Zhantian, this elder promptly informed the clan leader.

He continued, “However, before that, he killed an inner disciple of the Long clan and dozens of outer disciples…”

“How brazen! Both father and son have caused irreversible harm to the Long clan! They should be directly executed!” raged Long Zaiye.

“Shouldn’t you wait for me to finish speaking?” The elder frowned at the interruption before continuing, “Coincidentally, Long Ziwei received news of this and rushed over to challenge Long Chen.” After the elder said this, odd expressions crossed the faces of those present. After all, the Heaven Overseer had previously shared his evaluation of Long Chen’s talent and potential, using Long Ziwei as a point of comparison.

Long Ziwei had never accepted this comparison and went crazy to increase his power. During this time, he had made continuous breakthroughs, cultivating like a madman. His power steadily rose, all in preparation for a future showdown with Long Chen. Unexpectedly, this confrontation had arrived much sooner than anticipated.

“When does their battle start?”

“It is already over.”

“Then what were the results?” Everyone’s interest was piqued.

The reporting elder answered, “Long Ziwei lost in three breaths. He attacked relentlessly while Long Chen defended. In the end, Long Chen unleashed a single slash of his saber, and Long Ziwei willingly submitted, becoming Long Chen’s... little brother.”

“Bullshit! Long Ziwei would never submit to anyone! How could that stubborn brat actually become someone else’s little brother? Is that any different from being Long Chen’s dog?! How did my Long clan produce such a spineless coward?!” cursed Long Zaiye.

The rest of the people here were quite surprised as they were well aware of Long Ziwei’s power. He had been at rank ten for a long time, unable to advance further. However, they also knew those above Long Ziwei on the Heaven Rankings were true monsters, with many powerful geniuses vying for his position from below. The fact that he had maintained his rank for so long was impressive.

Who would have thought Long Ziwei would accept defeat at Long Chen’s hands and become his little brother? In the cultivation world, being someone’s little brother was not much different from being a footman. It was an embarrassment.

Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what to say. Although Long Ziwei wasn’t the strongest junior, he was famous for his stubbornness.

Long Ziwei was actually a frequent visitor of the disciplinary hall, and despite countless punishments, his obstinate nature remained unchanged. If not for his immense talent, he would have been beaten to death long ago. Yet, this stubborn mule had willingly become someone else’s little brother? It was inconceivable.

The elder continued, “There is also something else to report. In Mercenary City, Long Chen has begun teaching a cultivation technique to the mercenaries called the Starry River of the Sky Art. It is causing a significant reaction. Hundreds of thousands of mercenaries are training in it, and they all regard Long Chen and Long Zhantian as god-like figures.”

“Tch, the heads of the father-and-son duo must be broken. What is the point of helping these ants? Are they hoping these ants will help them fight in the future?” snorted Long Zaiye.

However, the other elders wore thoughtful expressions. Back then, Long Zhantian had used all his authority to give the mercenaries more rights and benefits, an action that had always seemed odd to these elders.

Now, Long Chen was teaching them a new cultivation technique upon his arrival? What were this father and son thinking? Although they didn’t understand Long Zhantian completely, they knew he was a decisive man who wouldn’t do anything pointless. He didn’t seem like the type to act out of goodwill. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so ruthless when killing the Long clan’s experts.

“Just what is this little fellow thinking?”

The elder replied, “According to Long Ziwei, Long Chen is not planning on interacting with our Long clan. He will be leaving after gathering all the medicinal ingredients. Ah, this is the list of ingredients he requested.”

The elder took out a piece of paper with over a hundred medicinal ingredients, and everyone was startled by it.

One person couldn’t help but exclaim, “Some of those aren’t even in our storehouses. Are you sure he’s here to gather medicinal ingredients?”

Those ingredients were mostly unique to the Heavenly Desolation Domain and were considered treasures due to their rarity. Although the Long clan possessed all those ingredients at one point, some had been used up and had yet to be replenished. This made people suspect Long Chen’s motives.

“Is he using the excuse of gathering medicinal ingredients while waiting for the Long clan to extend him an olive branch? Or perhaps he is in trouble, or the High Firmament Academy is, and he seeks our help?”

Everyone nodded hearing that as it was truly possible. In their minds, perhaps Long Chen was too embarrassed at the thought of reaching out for help, so he wanted the Long clan to be the one to take the initiative to reach out to him.

Long Zaiye sneered. Just as he was about to speak, the Heaven Overseer snorted, “You guys don’t understand Long Chen. He disdains doing such a thing. Some experts might be able to cut off his head, but no one can make him lower his head.”

The Heaven Overseer’s words were decisive. He had spent a lifetime inspecting countless people, and his vision and judgment had never failed him. He knew that someone like Long Chen couldn’t possibly do such a thing. As a result, seeing these people judging a talented young man according to their petty standards irritated him.

The Heaven Overseer suddenly stood up and declared, “That’s all I have to say. I’ve informed you of everything I know. The decision is yours to make.”

With that, the Heaven Overseer turned and walked out without looking back. Once he exited the palace, he looked up at the sky and sighed, shaking his head. He seemed so lonely.